Ahmed Bin Sulayem

Ahmed Bin Sulayem is the Executive Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of DMCC and has driven its growth from a start-up of 28 member companies in 2003 to the world’s leading international business district in 2025 with over 26,000 member companies from 180 countries, employing over 90,000 people.

Tasked with enhancing commodity trade flows through Dubai, DMCC has introduced to the market a number of value-added products and services under Mr Bin Sulayem’s leadership. In 2023, DMCC was named ‘Global Free Zone of the Year’ by The Financial Times fDi Magazine, for a record ninth consecutive year.

Mr Bin Sulayem oversaw the exponential growth of the DMCC Free Zone master development in Jumeirah Lakes Towers (JLT), a 200-hectare business and residential community in Dubai of over 100,000 people living and working in 87 towers. Mr Bin Sulayem also oversees the development of DMCC’s latest real estate project, the Uptown Dubai district.

Mr Bin Sulayem currently serves as the Chairman the Dubai Diamond Exchange (DDE) and the Dubai Gold & Commodities Exchange (DGCX).

The Kimberley Process officially appointed the United Arab Emirates (UAE) as the first and only Arab country to Chair the Kimberley Process (KP) in November 2015. Shortly after, the UAE Ministry of Economy officially appointed Mr Bin Sulayem as the UAE’s Chair of the KP for 2016. Mr Bin Sulayem was reappointed Chair of the KP for a historic second time in 2024, and has continued his leadership role with the position of Custodian Chair in 2025.

Raka Roy

Raka is a Partner and Head of the Intellectual Property and Data Protection practice at Galadari Advocates and Legal Consultants. With nearly 18 years of experience in the Middle East, she is widely recognised for her pragmatic, solutions-driven approach to complex and sensitive matters, particularly in intellectual property, data protection, and privacy.

She advises a diverse portfolio of clients across industries including automotive, healthcare, engineering, FMCG, food, and retail. In addition to leading the firm’s IP and Data Protection practice, Raka has significant experience in employment law, regularly supporting clients on HR advisory, contentious disputes, and compliance with local labour regulations. She also collaborates closely with corporate, family, and dispute resolution teams to deliver holistic legal solutions.

A registered patent agent with the Indian Patent Office and an active member of the International Trademark Association Leadership Program, Raka is a frequent speaker at international legal and industry forums.

Her professional excellence has been widely recognised. She is ranked Band 4 by Chambers & Partners for Intellectual Property in the UAE, named a “Notable Practitioner” by Managing IP, shortlisted for the LexisNexis Women in Law Awards, and featured among the “Powerful Indian Women in Intellectual Property” by the World IP Forum.

Omar Obeidat

Omar Obeidat is a Partner in Al Tamimi & Company and the Head of Competition and Intellectual Property and enjoys over 22 years of experience in this field.

Omar obtained his LL.B degree in 1996 from Yarmouk University, Jordan, and his LL.M. degree in 1997 from the University of Georgia at Athens, USA and he is qualified before Jordan Bar Association. He advised on a number of areas including Intellectual Property, Competition, Media, Regulatory Affairs and Compliance and Consumer Protection in the UAE as well as the Arab region. Omar had previously advised, with a team of lawyers, the Jordanian Government on the accession to the World Trade Organization.

Omar has overseen the Competition Law in the UAE from its inception initially commenting on the draft law to its adoption later on and implementation. In this regard, Omar is quite active in liaising with UAE Competition Authority in addressing compliance or defending clients’ interests.

On Competition disputes, Omar was successful in defending a move distributor and cinema operator in the first of its kind Competition Law investigation in the UAE.

On merger clearances, Omar was successful in obtaining approval for economic concentration decision by the Minister of economy for Uber acquisition of Careem assets. The significance of this transaction being in a dynamic ever-developing mobility sector and was the first merger control clearance worldwide for this transaction.

On the legislative side, Omar assisted in drafting or commenting on Trademarks Regulation, Industrial Property (Design & Patent) Law, Trade Secrets Draft, Competition Law, Cyber Crimes Law, and Plant Varieties Law.

Omar has spoken at tens of seminars, conferences, round tables on mostly intellectual property and, is regularly hosted on Televised programs including BBC World; ‘Middle East Business report’, Dubai TV, One TV, Rotana and Abu Dhabi TV, and has extensive publications.

Omar sets as the Vice President of AIPPI-UAE national group, and a Board member of Brand Owners Protection Group (BPG). And is a member to many organisations locally and internationally including and sat on various committees in International Trademarks Association. (INTA). He is also previously served as Trustee and Board member to the Dubai Advisory Board for Intellectual Property. Omar also previously sat as member of the Advisory Board for the Middle East North Africa Franchise Association (MENAFA), and on the Steering Committee for Global Entrepreneurship Monitor-UAE Chapter.

Omar is ranked Band 1 in Chambers and Tier 1 in Legal 500, The World Trademark Review ranked Omar as Gold and states “IP head Omar Obeidat is the star of the show; he is strongly endorsed for his anti-counterfeiting know-how and his in-depth understanding of IP law”. Omar was also a Winner of the Client Choice Awards 2015 under the practice Intellectual Property-Trademarks. He was also chosen by Managing Intellectual Property in the IP Stars Handbook of years 2014 through 2019.

Hanis Harmiles

Hanis Harmiles is the Founder & CEO of Reinvent IP, pioneering the IP-AI Index infrastructure for the next era of intellectual property in the AI content economy. The company's flagship product, IP Signals, is on a mission to become the 'S&P 500 of IP-AI', giving creative companies and media owners a benchmark to measure, compare, and track their IP exposure across the generative AI ecosystem.

A champion for creators, Hanis started this mission through Reinvent DAO, using blockchain for transparent IP licensing and royalty distribution. By indexing exposure across AI model outputs and platforms, IP Signals now enables studios, publishers, and rights holders to benchmark portfolios, identify high-risk assets early, and drive smarter licensing and monetisation decisions — in pursuit of a responsible AI economy.

Recognized as a Top 100 Women of the Future in Emerging Tech (2024), Hanis serves on the SHEISAI Global AI council and as an AI startups board advisor. Her professional background spans HSBC, Commonwealth Bank, and Accenture.

Mario Rizzo

Mario Rizzo is the Co-Founder and CEO of Artisan Studios, with over 20 years of experience in game development and publishing. He has worked on globally recognized licensed IPs including DC Universe Online, Star Wars Galaxies, Star Wars: The Old Republic, and FIFA Online, during his time at Sony Online Entertainment and Electronic Arts.

In 2016 he founded Artisan Studios, where he focuses on creating original IPs such as Astria Ascending and Lost Hellden, collaborating with leading Japanese creators from the Final Fantasy series. Mario brings deep expertise in IP creation, licensing, and commercialization, with experience across North America, Europe, and the Middle East.

He is currently based in Dubai, supporting the growth of the regional gaming ecosystem with his partners at the DMCC.

Belal Jassoma

Belal Jassoma is the Senior Director of Tech Ecosystems at DMCC, the world’s leading business district and authority on international commodities trade and enterprise.

Belal joined DMCC in 2011 and has been instrumental in scaling up DMCC’s ecosystems and commercial offering, including new products, services and member engagement programmes. In his current capacity as Director for Ecosystems, Belal is responsible for developing key strategic relationships, partnerships and product functions as well as overseeing ecosystem development across several of DMCC’s industry verticals such as crypto, gaming, AI, energy and financial services.

Belal holds a Bachelor of Science in Business Administration from the American University of Sharjah and brings over 18 years of experience in real estate, investment, and government administration.